The pre-season warm-up for the U.S. tour saw a heavyweight clash in the morning sunshine on Wednesday (31) as the duo of Manchester City and Barcelona battled it out. Despite coming from behind twice, the Blue Moon eventually drew 2-2 with the La Liga giants, but unfortunately lost on penalties. Since the start of the warm-up, City have won all three of their matches and are in such hot form that one can't help but question the state of preparation for the Premier League champions.
However, City's starting line-up is yet to arrive in full. Numerous core players have yet to return to the team due to their European and American tournament schedules. In this match, only Ainin Chalant, Chiarit, Gohuasi, Gahuadul and goalkeeper Aidachen Moras are part of the regular starting lineup. Barcelona, on the other hand, will be fielding a number of substitutes under the leadership of their first new manager, Alec Ferrick.
City dominated the early stages of the match, but Ainin Charant missed a good opportunity. Barcelona settled down and took the lead in the 24th minute with a great move by 22-year-old striker Park Oviedo.
City fought back quickly, and on 39 minutes, Gavadore's precise direct pass saw 19-year-old O'Reilly calmly equalize the score at 1-1. In first-half stoppage time, Pablo Tori once again snatched the lead for Barcelona with a brilliant shot.
After the break, City countered with a clever pass at the back post from Gohwasik to Kiarisch, who scored with a shot to bring the score to 2-2.
The game went into a penalty shootout and the two sides engaged in a fierce battle. Barcelona scored all four of their penalties, while Manchester City had Gavin Filas and 18-year-old youngster Julie Banquet miss, and Barcelona ended up winning the penalty shootout 4-1 to win the match.
On this tour of the United States, Barcelona will face Real Madrid on the morning of August 4 and AC Milan three days later. Manchester City, on the other hand, will face Chelsea in the early hours of August 4, and then compete in the Community Shield on the evening of August 10 against Manchester United.
